Health Alert: Shortage of Primary Care Providers Leading to More Emergency Surgeries. Primary care
providers (PCP) are essential for identifying health issues early on when they’re easier to manage. However, in areas
with a PCP shortage, individuals are more likely to seek care for health issues once they’ve progressed to the point
of requiring emergency treatment, which may lead to worse outcomes, including complications. The findings
highlight the need for greater access to healthcare services for individuals in underserved areas.
Health Affairs, March 2024
Diet: Healthy Diet Can Aid in Stress Management. The Mediterranean diet is an eating pattern focused on fruit,
vegetables, nuts, fish, olive oil, and whole grains while avoiding red and processed meats, dairy, saturated fats, and
refined sugars. A study that looked at data from the Korean Genome and Epidemiology Study found that greater
adherence to the Mediterranean diet pattern is associated with greater resilience to stress among middle-aged and
older adults. Nutrition Research and Practice, April 2024
Exercise: Yoga Provides Unique Cognitive Benefits for Women at Risk for Alzheimer’s. According to a recent
study, older women at risk for Alzheimer’s disease who participated in a yoga intervention experienced greater
improvements with respect to subjective memory complaints, brain connectivity, and anti-inflammatory gene
expression than women who performed memory training exercises. Translational Psychiatry, February 2024
Chiropractic: Treatment for Mechanical Neck Pain. Mechanical neck pain is a term used to describe neck pain
that results from the application of stress or strain on the anatomical structures of the neck. A recent study that
included 78 mechanical neck pain patients found that a treatment plan that included a combination of manual
therapies and therapeutic exercises—an approach commonly used by chiropractors—provided significant
improvements with respect to pain, disability, and function. Physical Therapy, March 2024
Mental Attitude: After-School Activities Can Harm Teen Mental Health. While parents are often advised to
encourage their teenagers to participate in afterschool sports and other activities to bolster their college resume and
facilitate healthy social growth, a recent study found that overloading a teen’s schedule can have detrimental effects
on their mental health and academic performance. Economics of Education Review, March 2024
Wellness/Prevention: Green Spaces Lower Osteoporosis Risk. Using data from the UK Biobank study,
researchers report that residents of neighborhoods with more greenery may have a 5% lower risk for osteoporosis.
The researchers speculate this may be due to the effect greenspaces can have on reducing air pollution, which can
benefit bone health, as well as an increase in physical activity that previous studies have associated with greater
access to parks and natural spaces. Annals of the Rheumatic Diseases, March 2024
Quote: “To begin, begin.” ~ William Wordsworth

I found that Dr. Joe Megna is one of the best chiropractors I have found in the Rio Vista region.